Pennsylvania will be 'gold standard' for fair custody: Rep. Flick

“This issue is very personal for me, as I have drawn from my own experience in family court, fighting for years for equal custody of my children in an unjust system,” Flick said. “I was so glad to be joined by supporters from across the country who understand the urgent need for reform. This is a family bill aimed at protecting children.”

Flick described being limited to every-other-weekend visits despite being an involved father, recounting repeated continuances, false allegations, financial strain, and a court order that conditioned equal custody on continued child-support payments as though he had fewer overnights.

Experts presented compelling testimony

Testifiers at the Policy Committee hearing included Teresa Sneed, founder, president and chief executive officer, National Family Justice; Hon. Tony Payton, former member, Pennsylvania House of Representatives; Greg Fellerman, founding partner, Fellerman and Ciarimboli Law; and Hon. Mica Wood Pence, 43rd Circuit judge, Barren and Metcalfe counties in Kentucky.

Former State Rep. Tony Payton shared his experience navigating custody battles across multiple states, including repeated unfounded allegations and years spent fighting for adequate parenting time. “You don't fight for nine years because you're a bad dad. You fight because you care,” Payton said.

Sneed, founder of National Family Justice, presented national data showing that shared parenting improves outcomes in academic performance, mental health, relationships, and long-term well-being. She noted that Pennsylvania currently earns a “D” rating for shared parenting policy. “This isn’t a parental rights issue—it’s a children’s rights issue, and the science is unequivocal,” Sneed testified.

In particularly powerful testimony, attorney Gregory Fellerman detailed how a 65/35 custody order ultimately cost him more than a year of time with his daughter before her tragic death at age 20. “Fathers deserve equal treatment under the law. Tomorrow is promised to no one,” he said.

“My custody order was 65/35 and it breaks down to a little more than a year, 13 months, 56 weeks, 401 days, 9,624 hours taken from me,” Fellerman said, becoming emotional. “We need change to prevent this type of injustice from occurring. I want to commend Rep. Jamie Flick for all his hard work and dedication to solving this problem.”

Pence, a family court judge, traveled from Kentucky, where the state has adopted similar legislation. She spoke candidly about the initial hesitation of judges, lawyers and attorneys when the law was first introduced, noting that many feared it would complicate custody proceedings. However, she emphasized that the law has led to fewer courtroom battles and better outcomes for children.

“The problem in Kentucky is that we were making an assumption,” Pence said. “I was wrong to be as worried as I was that this law wasn’t going to work, but I am thankful Kentucky was on the cutting edge of this. The conversation changes when parents have equal power,” she explained. “It has made families stronger, not weaker.”

Flick also took questions during a personal question-and-answer session where people from all over the Commonwealth shared their frustrations and hopes for reform. When asked for an example of a gold standard to model Pennsylvania's child custody reform policy, Flick said "Pennsylvania will be the gold standard."

Broad bipartisan interest

“I’ve never seen a hearing quite this robust,” said House Judiciary Chairman Rob Kaufman (R-Franklin). “This is one of the most frequent issues constituents raise, and the testimony today shows why change is needed.”

“Pennsylvania families deserve custody laws that reflect the world we live in today. I commend Rep. Flick for his commitment to modernizing these laws,” said Rep. David H. Rowe (R-Snyder/Union/Mifflin/Juniata), House Republican Policy Committee chair. “Today’s hearing reaffirmed that this is a bipartisan issue grounded in one shared goal: ensuring children can maintain strong, stable relationships with both parents whenever it is safe and appropriate.”

To wrap up the day, Flick hosted a press conference on the steps of the Main Capitol Rotunda where those in attendance held signs that read “Kids Need Both.”

Robert Garza, vice president of National Family Justice and a nationally recognized advocate for children and parental rights, gave voice to his strong support for House Bill 1499. Garza, who has helped draft legislation across the country, compared the growing movement for shared parenting reform to other major social justice efforts in American history.

“50/50 shared parenting impacts every man, woman and child,” Garza said. “This is the largest support group I have ever seen put together in support of 50/50 legislation. I think Pennsylvania could set the standard for what needs to happen.”

Mark Ludwig, executive director of the National Council for Equal Shared Parenting, has played a key role in advancing similar legislation in several states, including Kentucky, Arkansas, West Virginia, Florida and Missouri. He acknowledged that while Pennsylvania has been working toward shared parenting reform for years and he believes the Commonwealth is now poised to finally make it a reality.

“Now that we have so many states there seems to be a ripple effect where momentum is building,” Ludwig said. “At these events hosted by Rep. Flick, there were parents here today, not just dads. You also saw a lot of mothers, grandmothers and children who grew up without their dads. I have been in politics for 40 years and this is the only issue I’ve seen that crosses gender lines, racial lines, economic lines and really impacts everyone.”

House Bill 1499 has 32 co-sponsors, both Democrats and Republicans. It currently sits in the House Judiciary Committee.

Watch the full Policy Committee hearing here.

Watch the full press conference here.